Giving Thanks
by Rioghna
Summary: First Thanksgiving in Storybrooke, and Belle has a secret. In the same series as 'First Halloween' and 'The Dancing Floor'. Another first for the family. Rum/Belle, etc.
1. Chapter 1

"Tell me again why we are doing this and why here of all places?" Gold asked as Belle sat making a list at the kitchen table.

"Because it's what they do here, and because Snow and Charming aren't finished getting their house fixed up," she said calmly. They both knew the reasons, but he didn't like them. Of course, there were reasons why the Thanksgiving Day celebration should be held at their house. It was yet another holiday that they had never had in their own land, but they were still stuck here. It did have similarities to end of harvest festivals at home. But that didn't make it any easier for him. True, the Prince and Princess had just bought a charming house not far from their own that would have almost as much room as the house that he and Belle occupied. But it was also what was politely termed a 'fixer upper' and it was still more full of painting supplies and construction materials than furniture. But how that led to this celebration being held at his house (and why he had agreed) he wasn't certain.

"Are you really that unhappy about it?" Belle asked him. She had that look, biting her lower lip just a little in the way that drove him to complete distraction, and her blue eyes were wide and just a little concerned.

"No," he said finally. He knew he would give in; he usually did, unless for some reason he thought it would be unsafe. Belle had been a little distracted recently, and he was concerned about her, though she told him she was just tired. If she really wanted this, he would give it to her. He was still trying to get used to all the new things in his life; reunited with his son, getting engaged to marry the most beautiful woman in the world, and becoming use to being a grandfather in a world he had never paid much mind to before the curse was broken, he was feeling just a little...overwhelmed.

"Good; you know that it will make everyone happy." He failed to comment. After all, before he had found Belle again, he had not much concerned himself with anyone's happiness, his own included. Now his life was much more complicated than that. Storybrooke, Maine was a town that walked in two worlds. The inhabitants had all come from a land of myth and magic before being transported here, then had lived for almost three decades in a curse-induced bubble that had kept people who didn't belong from staying, and the inhabitants lost in a strange timeless half state. Now with the curse broken, the townspeople knew who they had been, and the outside world had found them, sort of. Tourists came, for the same reason that they came to any other small town in Maine. Though there weren't all that many of them, still that they could come was a big enough change. Fortunately, thanks to a little bit of magic, they never stayed more than the usual time. Things could be awkward when Red went running as a wolf under the full moon or the dwarves had too much to drink at Granny's and started singing. Then there was the giant, Tiny and his magic beans, which would hopefully some day take them back to their own world, at least the ones that wanted to. But that was something that he was still working on. It would take big magic to transport them all and restore their own world, and working it from a land almost entirely devoid of magic was going to require all of his skill. Meanwhile they tried to keep going, tried to keep everything as normal as it could be.

Rather than think about the larger issues, he decided to focus on now and enjoy the last few minutes of his fiancee's company before he went off to open the store. It was going to be a long day. The other thing about tourists was they actually shopped. Rumplestiltskin, or R. Gold, was accustomed to his shop being frequented by people who lived in town, who he knew and whose stories he knew. They came looking for gifts, pieces of their past, or the odd deal, which it was against his nature to refuse. Though he was much more careful about those than he used to be. Now people came to buy things. It also wasn't easy to talk them out of buying things that really shouldn't be out in the world, pieces that belonged to those around town who weren't ready or hadn't realized they needed them yet. You just can't sell someone else's magic to another. He tried to be polite, charming, and as cold as he always was, but some people were just immune, even to outright rudeness. Rumplestiltskin actually considered closing the shop, opening only by appointment, but then what would he do with his time? He technically could practice law, but that was just as useless. Other than a spate of divorces and remarriages after the breaking of the curse (Regina really did have some strange twisted fascination with putting strange couples together; he almost admired it, in a sort of morbid way), people had settled down pretty quickly.

Of course they were short a DA. King George had been a difficult problem to deal with, them not having the facilities to really hold him for an extended time period. Charming had been really unsure how to deal with him, and with Emma gone, he had been left with a very difficult decision. Rumplestiltskin had offered him the way out of it. Tossing him across the town line had been something of a pleasure, and he had graciously given the honour to Red, the wolf girl being the most hurt by his actions. Albert Spencer had no memory of his murder of the polite young mouse who drove the tow truck, but he knew that he had made himself unpopular and was even now working as a senior ADA in Portland. If he thought there was something odd about the mirror over his dresser or the one behind the door in his office, well he never showed it. But no, that wasn't the sort of thing that he wanted to do. He enjoyed working with his hands, repairing the antiques in his shop, making sure things made it back to where they belonged when they belonged, or else never made it out at all. It was amazing; the strange magical junk that had been hiding around Storybrooke during the curse; lucky that no one had blown anyone up, or turned themselves into something unnatural.

"I'm not sure about lunch today," Belle said, breaking into his thoughts.

"What love?" he said, disturbed. He knew how much Belle enjoyed their lunches together. They had a regular schedule, more or less. Tuesdays and Thursdays he walked over to the library to spend lunch with her, while Wednesdays, which had always been his late night at the shop, they met at Granny's. Friday and Saturday she came to the shop, sometimes bringing a full picnic lunch on Saturday, since now she had help at the library and could take a day off. It didn't matter, as long as they had time together. It was important, to both of them, or so he thought.

"It's nothing to worry about, Rumple, and you know I love our lunches together. But I promised I would get together with Snow about the food, and she only has a little break since the children don't start their hols 'til tomorrow. I promise I'll make it up to you," she said rising from her place at the table to come and lean down for a kiss. With a wicked smile, he pulled her off her feet into his lap.

"Will you?" he said. "And how will you do that? Perhaps a demonstration is in order before I decide whether I agree?" He teased her before she closed her lips over his in a kiss that even after this time never failed to amaze him. In fact, he could have easily been persuaded to stay home and take Belle back upstairs. She leaned even closer, resting her head against his cheek, nibbling gently at his throat.

"Now," she said. "About that agreement?" she asked smiling up at her.

"Are you sure I can't convince you to make it up to me first?" he asked. After all, she was already in his arms. "You can be a little late, surely." Rumplestiltskin nuzzled at her, pulling her head back so he could gain access to her neck.

"Darling," she whispered, but he was too busy to notice. "Rumple, please," she whispered.

"What, my love," he whispered, his lips moving against her throat. "What is it you want from me?"

"What I want is you to take me back upstairs so I can show you just how much I will miss you, but I can't. Really I can't, and neither can you," she said, and he could hear the regret in her voice.

"Very well," he said, planting one last kiss on her lips. Still, it pleased him more than he could admit the length of time it took her to pull herself away from him. "Perhaps after this Thanksgiving, I can close the store for a few days and you and I can..."

"How about a week at the cabin, just you and I?" she said, the warmth in her voice heating him further.

"I could take you anywhere in the world you know," he said standing up slowly, preparing to put his cup and plate in the sink.

"You could, yes, but all I really want is to be with you."

Unable to think of anything that was worth saying after that, he leaned over and kissed her quickly, before moving towards the door before he couldn't resist anymore. "Have a good day love; dinner tonight?" he said from the door.

"We have all this cooking to do; why don't I bring home something from Granny's?" she said.

"An even better idea; why don't I?" Belle smiled at him. It didn't encourage him to leave any faster, but he forced himself out the door.

Once he was gone, Belle allowed her expression to change. She hated lying to him, really she did. Well, actually it wasn't so much of a lie; she was meeting Mary Margaret at the school briefly over her lunch break to compare their lists and decide who was cooking what. But then she had an appointment at the hospital. That was the part that scared her. She and Rumplestiltskin had never discussed it, not before, certainly not now. She knew he was good with children, and he missed the years he had lost when Bae had been lost, but did he want to have a child now, with her? Belle didn't know, but now was not the time to worry about it, not until after her appointment with the Doctor. At least it wasn't Dr. Whale, er Dr. Frankenstein. While she had a great deal of sympathy for the character in the book, it was a long way from allowing the man to treat her. Besides Rumplestiltskin, who liked him as well as he liked anyone, didn't trust him to tend her, she certainly wasn't going to either. Not that her future husband trusted anyone particularly with her; but he was a little over protective.

The problem was she needed someone to talk to, someone who knew about pregnancy. Ruby was a good friend but no help, and she wasn't sure she was ready to share this with Snow, or with Emma even though both had been through it. First things first though, she thought, making sure she wasn't just imagining things. She looked at her watch, grabbed her lists and coat and headed out to start her day. She would have all afternoon to worry about it.

Her meeting with Mary Margaret went well, and quick. She left with her shopping list, thanking the other woman for her offer to share her sandwich but using the excuse of having to get shopping done (which she did) to take herself off to the doctor. That meeting went, well exactly the way she thought it would. The doctor confirmed what she had already thought herself; she was definitely pregnant, about six weeks along. The rest went by in a swirl of words that she couldn't even begin to comprehend. She vaguely remembered the woman asking her if she was happy, and what her plans were. That brought Belle out of her fugue state for long enough to tell her that yes, she was happy. It wasn't like the doctor didn't know who the father was; the whole town knew about her and Rumplestiltskin, more than half of them had seen him propose at the Midsummer Ball. The question still remained of how to tell him and what to say. After securing the promise of the doctor to tell no one (the town being a gossip haven), she thanked her, and promised to make a follow up appointment after the holiday and after she had told him. Belle was pretty certain of the Doctor keeping her confidence. People still walked carefully where her future husband was concerned.

So it was that she found herself some time later sitting on a bench in the park, a handful of pamphlets clutched in her hand, trying to figure out how she was going to tell the most powerful man in this world that he was about to be a father after a gap of several hundred years. It wasn't that she thought he would be angry about it; she had seen him with Henry, and with the children at Halloween, when he didn't know that she was watching from upstairs. Honestly, she had planned to come down and help him, but he had seemed so truly happy, playing the way he had in their old world, only without the bitter edge. He had played the gallant monster with all the princesses, and the sneering villain with the knights. But it was a long way to having a child of his own with all the disruptions and upset that would cause to their life. If she was honest with herself, they had never much talked about it. She didn't like him to focus on the age difference. She knew he thought he was past the age where such things as contraception were necessary, and she had been too busy getting used to freedom, and having him in her life.


	2. Chapter 2

So distracted was she by her thoughts that she didn't see the man who walked up to her until he was right in front of her. "Belle, hey, are you okay?" Bae asked, looking down at her. She tried to call him Neal, almost everyone else did, but his father had not managed, and mostly he had been accepting. He had explained early on that his name had caused him some trouble when he had first come to this world, so he had changed it. Belle was always uncertain what to call him, especially as he was going to be her step son or something.

"I...yes. I was just lost in thought," she said trying for a smile. The young man dropped himself down on the bench next to her.

"I understand. Hope we aren't putting you through a lot of trouble tomorrow. I know that Mary Margaret can be pretty overwhelming. I'm not sure I even got asked about..." He came to a sudden halt as his eyes came to rest on the handful of glossy pamphlets in her hands, and the words leaped out at him, things like 'You and Baby, a guide to early pregnancy'. "Belle," he asked, looking her straight in the eyes. "Are you..."

She didn't know what to say, though she immediately stuffed the pamphlets into her shoulder bag, blushing. It wasn't exactly the way she had foreseen telling anyone, and she wasn't sure that telling Bae first was the right way to go about it. Though if anyone knew how his father would take it, he was probably that person. Instead of saying anything, she just nodded, and waited.

"That's fantastic!" he said, throwing his arms around her. Belle was shocked by the force of his reaction. "Have you told Pop yet? No, of course you haven't; if you had, the entire town would have heard by now."

"You really think he is going to be happy about it?" she asked cautiously. "I mean, I just haven't found the right words but I wasn't..."

"Why wouldn't he?" the young man asked her. "I mean, it's his right?" he asked carefully. Not that he could picture this woman who was so completely and kind of inexplicably in love with his father ever cheating on him. She wasn't his mother; she saw the same things in his father that he had as boy, before the Dark One took over his soul, and she was bringing those things back in him. For that alone, the part of him that was still Baelfire would always be grateful.

"Of course it is his," she said indignantly. "I have only ever... well, that's none of your business," she said blushing. "But yes, there is no chance it's anyone else's, none."

"Ok, then, why are you worried about telling him?"

"I just don't..." she stopped; she just couldn't find a good way to say all the things that were going on in her head. But he seemed to understand all the same.

"You know Pop always wanted more children. My mother, she...you have to promise me that you will never tell him I said this ok?" Belle nodded cautiously. "You know, I was a young boy, maybe Henry's age, when one of the other boys told me that my mother was a whore. I punched him, and his father came out and boxed my ears. Then he said that's what could be expected of the son of a coward and a whore. It didn't help that she didn't discover she was pregnant until after he left. I was born while he was gone, but there were always people who said I probably wasn't even his." Belle gasped.

"No, how could they say that, to anyone?!" she said sharply. Bae just shrugged, as if it was something he had long ago stopped worrying about it.

"Pop always tried to hide it from me, the way my mother was. She wasn't really a mother at all. She had no respect for Pop, even though he did what he did for us. He didn't want me to grow up without a father, like he had. He was afraid of what would happen to us. She didn't care; though, looking back she probably thought she would be a much better marriage prospect as the widow of a soldier who had been a skilled tradesman, than the wife of a coward. Maybe she cared for my papa once; I don't know. I know that they fought, when they thought I was asleep; Papa was always trying to tell her to keep it down, but she was usually drunk, and would say horrible things to him. He tried to hide it from me; he would say that she had gone out to get something, or that she was helping one of the other village women. He had a thousand excuses for why she wasn't home." His voice had a bitter edge to it, and it made her wonder more about the woman that she knew Rumplestiltskin had killed. At the time, she had wanted to be appalled by his actions, but just as much by the mother that abandoned her son. It took a few moments for Bae to recover himself. She could see that he was having difficulty telling her this. Probably would have difficulty telling anyone, she was pretty certain that he had never discussed this with his father.

"Papa did everything he could for us; he spun, even though people gave him less than his thread and yarn were worth because of who he was. He was twice as good as the other spinner, but they wouldn't go to a coward for his goods unless they needed something that only he could do. But that's not the important bit. He was a good father, really he was. He loved to spend time with me, taking me out with him to tend the sheep when I was too small to help, and keeping me with him. I never really missed that my mother wasn't around because I had my papa, and he tried everything he could to be both, even before she left. Even becoming the Dark One, he did that for me, to protect me. I wanted to hate him for that, gods know I hated him for long enough for everything; for abandoning me, for all the people he killed, then I think about the Ogre war. At the time I didn't understand; if the Dark One could just banish the Ogres, if he had that kind of power, then why did the King keep building up an army of people who were just going to get killed? I still don't understand it, but that's different. He went to the battlefield and he brought all the children home. For a moment, everyone thought he was a hero, but then the darkness started. He changed." He shrugged, it was probably the longest talk he had ever had with anyone about his father, not even Emma, but then Emma wasn't about to marry the man. "When I see him with you now, I see him as he was before, and that person, he was an amazing father."

"So you think he will still be happy about it? I mean about us having a baby?"

"I think he will be over the moon. This town isn't going to know what to make of him. Just look at the way he is with Henry; yeah, he's a little rusty, but he will remember quick enough."

"Thank you for that. I never thought it wouldn't be, just wasn't sure if he, well, if he wanted any more children now, if you know what I mean?"

"I think that no matter when or in what world, he would want children with you," he told her, taking her hand and giving it a squeeze. "Can I put in a request for a sister? I always wanted a little sister," Bae teased her.

"Not sure there is much that can be done, but I'll bear it in mind," she said, giving him a smile. His complete confidence in his father's happiness had eased her mind a lot, and what he had told her about that woman (she refused to think of her as his wife, especially after how broken she had left him), it had been hard not to show her anger. Now she knew it though; all she wanted to do was go back home, and drag him to her, to reassure him that she loved him and would forever. After all, she had given her word. "But promise me you won't tell anyone, not Emma, not Henry, not anyone until I have a chance to tell him. You know how good this town is at keeping secrets."

"Not one word. I'll wait to hear the shouts of joy," he teased.

"So it never occurred to me to ask, what are you doing here?" Belle asked him. She knew that he had been working helping out David on the house, as well as working as a sort of handyman for his father, helping fix the myriad things that went wrong with apartments in the winter. He had refused to take a handout from his father, or any help at all at first, but he had been in the shop in the midst of some crisis of magic (something about a magical teapot; she had been on her way to the library at the time), when someone's water heater had burst. Rumplestiltskin had offered him a place at the shop, a university education, or pretty much anything he wanted, but for now, he seemed to enjoy doing random construction and repair jobs around town.

"Waiting for my son. I finished refinishing the dining room floors over at David's, I'm waiting for the polyurethane to dry, so he and I are going to go brave the store. I have a list of things that we are supposed to bring tomorrow, somewhere. None of them involve cooking either, which is good, since neither one of us is exactly a good cook. Emma got out of it; she's dealing with a wreck out by the town sign."

"Oh no, not again, tell me that there is nothing wrong with..."

"No, completely nonmagical, tourist vs. tourist, with an added deer in the mix. Apparently the people in one car got so distracted by trying to avoid the deer, that they went into the other lane. The car in that lane failed to miss either car or deer. Emma said it was a mess, but only of the kind caused by people. The deer was just stunned; it got up and left, but the two drivers were arguing about who was at fault. I just hope she keeps her temper in check and doesn't end up locking them both up. Henry is going to Regina's tonight, so he can come with us tomorrow." Belle nodded, feeling more relaxed that she had in the last two days. It was the kind of thing that was so...normal, well for Storybrooke. She wondered, briefly, what Regina was doing for Thanksgiving. She really wanted to hate the woman after what she had done to her, but hate wasn't something that was in her nature. Still, she hoped the woman had a place to go. Belle wasn't exactly going to invite her to their house; Rumplestiltskin still put himself between the two of them if they met on the street. But she didn't like the idea of the woman who was, like her own love, trying to find her way back, spending the holiday alone. Maybe she should ask Mary Margaret.

"Hey Papa, hey Belle," she heard and looked up just in time to see Henry coming down the hill.

"Hey kid, ready to go?" Bae asked. "Belle, since we both have to go to the store, what about we give you a hand? Two strong guys to carry your groceries? What do you think, Henry, help a damsel in distress?"

"Sure, Belle, we can protect you from the grocery shopping. Last year, old Mrs. Hubbard almost wacked Sidney with her cane for getting too close to the last can of yams; it was scary."

She could see from his look that he was probably doing it because of her condition, and that if this was how Bae was, what would his father be, but she couldn't very well refuse, after that offer. "Very well, the two of you can protect me." she said standing up with a smile as Henry bowed. Clearly he had been taking lessons from his other grandfather. She smiled and followed them down the hill into town.


	3. Chapter 3

Rumplestiltskin was feeling a little dazed. It wasn't a feeling he was used too. Last night he had arrived home to find Belle unpacking more groceries than he thought he had probably ever had in this house. She was consulting a large cook book and checking things off a list, and pulling other things out of the various bags that were sitting on the counter.

"I hope you didn't have to carry all that home by yourself," he had asked her, but she told him that his son and grandson had been on hand for the lifting and the carrying. After she had finished with the groceries, they had settled down to eat the take away he had brought home for the two of them. It was only after than, after checking her lists again, and asking him to get down a platter for her, he managed to remind her about their earlier arrangement. After that, they had not time or thought for anything but each other.

Now he had woken up alone, in an empty and slightly cold bed. Usually he couldn't sleep without Belle by his side, but apparently, well last night she had decided to show him exactly how much she had missed him all day. They had fallen asleep wrapped tightly around one another, with Belle's head pillowed on his shoulder, and her legs wrapped around his good leg, so close that he could feel every breath. He pulled himself from the bed a little slowly. He reached for his dressing gown but it wasn't tossed over the foot rail of the bed, where he usually took it off. Actually the floor was scattered with examples of exactly how much of a hurry they were in last night. Shaking his head, he rose and grabbed the dressing gown off the back of the door.

In the kitchen he found Belle already hard at work. She was wearing his dress shirt, the one that he was wearing yesterday, and her slippers, but the robe, his robe that she usually wore was tossed over one of the kitchen chairs, and she had his apron tied around her waist and her hair pinned up in a messy bun. "Good morning, love," she said to him, turning to empty the tea pot out and prepare their morning tea.

After that things got very busy, very quickly, or so it seemed. Belle had been unable to settle but instead rushed around, seemingly doing a thousand things at once. She rushed upstairs to get cleaned up and dressed, promising him a chance this evening, when he offered to help. "Are you sure you wouldn't like help," he asked, as he lifted her bra from the top of a small lamp.

"Not now," she said, blushing as she grabbed it from him. "But perhaps you could manage to find the rest?" He nodded, while he could care less about what his guests did or didn't assume (well with the exception of his grandson), he didn't want Belle to be uncomfortable. So he gathered up the trail of clothing that led from the living room to the bedroom, just in time for her to come rushing out of the shower, wrapped in nothing but a towel.

They had managed to extract themselves from what he thought a much more pleasant way of being thankful by the time that the door bell rang, and Rumplestiltskin was relegated to answering the door and the occasional lifting and carrying. He had managed to forgo the suit at Belle's urging, and settled for dress slacks in charcoal grey and a shirt with a band collar in a shade of red that his lady had always been particularly fond of. The first to arrive, unsurprisingly, was Mary Margaret, Princess Snow White herself, with her own supply of carrier bags, and he wasn't exactly sure how he managed to get himself roped into ferrying things from the car to the kitchen. He though about excusing himself to the the other room, really he did, but Belle looked so overwhelmed that he found himself taking down dishes from the butler's panty ('the nice dishes, please Rumplestiltskin' she said with those big blue eyes) and carrying them carefully into the dining room before the door bell rang again.

His son and the Sheriff were the next to arrive. "Hey Pop, where's Belle?" he asked after giving his father hug. It was stiff and a little awkward, but they were getting better at it.

"In the kitchen with Princess Snow," he said. "Where is Henry?" He was really very fond of his grandson. Even though he would never get back the years he had lost with Bae, he was trying to make it up with Henry.

"He'll be along with his other mom, uh...Pop, can I..." he said making it clear he needed to say something.

"Of course, Sheriff, why don't you go through?" he said politely.

"Thanks, Gold. When are you going to start calling me Emma, at least at this sort of...gathering," she asked. Clearly she was as comfortable with all this domestic family stuff as he was.

"Perhaps when you stop calling me 'Gold'?" he said with a smirk.

"Might be a while then, I'm not sure I can call you Rumplestiltskin," The Sheriff told him honestly. "All the fairy tale stuff is just..."

"It takes time," he said, "Mary Margaret and Belle are in the kitchen and I am sure they have some bowls or plates or something for that." He nodded at the bags she was carrying. Bae leaned in a gave her a quick kiss while he tried to neither look nor smile. Rumplestitltskin was glad his son had found his true love. He would not have chosen the child of Charming and Snow White, but he knew as well as anyone that you can't choose your true love. Instead he waved his son into the front room. It wasn't nearly as much a museum piece as it had been before Belle came, but it still wasn't his favourite room. But it would do.

"Listen, Pop, about Regina, are you sure you are okay with this?" Bae asked the minute they were alone. "I mean I know she is not exactly your favourite person, and you don't exactly trust her, especially now..."

"Okay with what, what is this about Regina?" he asked, Suddenly, something vague from last night, Belle asking him...But then it dissolved to a memory of Belle pulling off his tie and what that had lead to. Bae looked a little startled and not sure how to tell his father, he knew the man's temper, and now was not the time to upset Belle, especially since if she hadn't told him about Regina, she probably hadn't told him about the baby yet.

"She didn't tell you that she invited her for dinner?" he said carefully. "We, Henry and I, were helping Belle with the groceries yesterday, and we ran into Regina. You know how Belle is, she can't stop being nice. It's just...Regina was going to be alone for Thanksgiving..." he didn't know what to say.

"So Belle invited her to join us," he said slowly. Rumplestiltskin could feel his mood shifting. He didn't trust Regina one little bit, and he had never forgiven her for what she had done to Belle. On the other hand, he knew what it was to try to change. In fact, if he was honest with himself, he was at least a little bit to blame for everything Regina had done. Then there was Henry, his grandson had a good heart, more like Belle than his actual grandmother. The boy wouldn't want his mother alone. For all her faults, and he was just as aware of them as the rest of them were, if not more, he still loved her and they were all trying to make this relationship work. He could see Belle, unable to resist anyone in distress, especially if it was Henry. He wasn't letting her out of it that easily though.

"You didn't know," his son said, suddenly worried that he had done the wrong thing. Bae knew his father, and he was canny enough to know that the temper of the Dark One still lurked beneath the surface.

"I believe she told me, but I was distracted at the time," he said, thinking about his tie being drawn through her small fingers as she straddled his lap on settee in front of the fire. It was possible she had told him any number of things last night that he didn't remember. "You needn't worry about Belle, Bae," he said, calmly. "I might not be happy with the situation, but if she hadn't she wouldn't be the woman I love." He put his hand on his son's arm, and Bae smiled at him. Not very easy for them to be affectionate, though they had been when he was a child, but they were getting there. To the rest of the world he might be Neal Cassidy, but with his father he would always be Baelfire. In fact, here in this half fairy tale town, he didn't mind at all. Still, he knew the man was up to something, when they went back into the other room.

"Belle love," he said, his voice so even, so bland that even Mary Margaret and Emma knew that something was not quite right. "Can we speak?" One eyebrow rose, and his half smile told a story, though the only one that seemed to know it was Belle. She blushed from the toes up.

"Ah," she said. "I'm..." but the look on his face convinced her, and he waved her into the butler's pantry for a little privacy. "What is so important?" she asked nervously. They were pressed pretty close to one another in the small space.

"Did you forget something, or rather did you tell me something last night when you had me so distracted that I wasn't sure I knew my own name?"

"Did I?" she said, trying for innocent, but it was hard to do that when she remembered where they found her bra this morning. Come to think of it, she wasn't exactly sure she knew where her knickers were. Suddenly she hoped that Rumplestiltskin had found them, or that she had merely scooped them up with the rest of the clothes. She certainly didn't want Henry to find them, or Regina for that matter.

"Evil Queen, dinner, is any of this coming back to you, dearie?" he said, his voice pitching up to familiar levels.

"I...I couldn't let Henry down," she told him, looking slightly miserable. "I didn't mean to, and I didn't want you to be angry. I thought I would just tell you when you were in a good mood."

"And?" he said, putting one finger under her chin and turning it up to face him.

"I got distracted?" she said, looking at him with red cheeks and big eyes. Since neither of them could forget last night or that they had both been thinking with something other than their heads, there really wasn't much to say.

"I may just have to make you pay for this later," he said, before kissing her. "And she is not to get anywhere near the food, in fact, I would perfer she not be in the kitchen at all, but with everyone else already in here, I suppose that is asking a bit much. But if she brings anything to eat, you are not to touch it. I am not willing to trust her with you, not yet." Belle nodded and the two of them leaned in for a conciliatory kiss when there was a knock on the pantry door. Belle started to pull back but Rumplestiltskin was not letting go so easily dragged her back against him.

"Hey, you two, sorry to..." Emma started as she opened the door. There was a look of shock on her face. Clearly she had drawn the short straw. Rumplestiltskin drew away from his lady, who was smiling, but with a hint of a blush.

"Miss Swan, it is customary to wait for someone to answer after knocking. However, we were just finishing up. I will let you get on with it," he said standing up tall, and straightening his shirt just a little before stepping out of the pantry.


	4. Chapter 4

The next time the doorbell rang it was David Nolan. "Rumplestiltskin," he said, shaking the man's hand. "Hope you don't mind having your house taken over. I'm afraid that Snow..."

"Not at all," he said, trying to be polite about it. After all, he had given in. "There was a certain logic to it, and besides, she had Belle on her side." The Prince just nodded, after all they knew how true love went. "They are in the kitchen," he directed the young man in. He was just closing the door when a familiar black Jaguar pulled up in front of his house, looking for a place to park. Henry jumped out of the passenger side with something in his arms, and ran carefully up to the door.

"Hey grandpa," he said, and leaning in when his grandfather gave him half a hug, avoiding what was clearly a plate he was holding. "It's a pie," he said loudly before adding in a much quieter tone. "Don't worry, it's pumpkin and I helped make it, just to be sure."

"That's very good of you," Rumplestiltskin said. "Not sure that we need more food, we will probably all be eating leftovers for at least a week, but the effort is nice." He was trying. It took a great deal of effort not to throw the pie away as if it were a grenade. As it was, he very carefully sent a tendril of magic, just to make sure. Indeed, there was nothing magical about the pie, and he managed a smile for Regina when she made it to the door.

"Thank you," she said, very quietly as she followed his gesture inside. "I know..." she started.

"Belle invited you, that is enough," he said, not wanting to turn this into something fluffy, certainly not with Regina. Instead he directed her to the kitchen, where Mary Margaret and Belle were busy doing all kinds of esoteric things with food. Regina was greeted in a more or less friendly fashion and someone gave her an apron and set her to helping clean the crystal glasses that had been got down from the pantry.

"Someone set the table," Mary Margaret called out, as she was pouring gravy into a bowl.

"On it," David said.

"Would anyone like a drink?" the host said, feeling a little bit useless. He didn't exactly know how to participate in this kind of family camaraderie, and he certainly wasn't used to parties in his house.

"Rumple, why don't you open the wine?" Belle asked. He nodded easily, as David roped Henry into helping with the table, and his son was laying a cloth down on a sideboard that was probably Victorian.

"If you've still got some scotch," his son said, in passing. He could tell that all this family stuff, as much as he was enjoying it, was not necessarily as easy for everyone as he thought. He nodded and fixed them both with a whiskey, and offered one to David. He refused, saying that he was more of a beer drinker.

"There is a six pack in the refrigerator," he told him, probably his brand, since he was certain it had not been there yesterday. "And soda for Henry."

"Its okay, Pop," his son said quietly to him as he passed him the glass. "This normal family stuff, we'll get the hang of it."

"Not sure I even know what normal is," he said with a shrug.

"Pop, which one of us does?" he said raising an eyebrow in a frightfully familiar look.

"Ok, everyone, get to the table, its about time to eat," Princess Snow said through the open door, taking charge as usual. Rumplestiltskin, since it was his house, had been given the seat at one end of the table, while Charming was given the other. There was probably some kind of protocol for this sort of thing, and apparently they had figured it out, though he had no idea how. Belle was next to Rumplestitskin, with Henry and Regina making up the side, while Snow was next to Charming, with his son next to her, and Emma Swan taking up the remaining seat next to the sorcerer. It was an...interesting arrangement.

They managed to actually get through most of the meal with only a little bit of discomfort at the beginning. It started with David telling a story about the first bird he had ever shot. It the world of the Enchanted Forest, hunting was a regular thing, and with the exception of Henry and Emma, they all had a story or two, biggest bird, smallest bird, the one that had gotten away, and the one that almost did. "Believe it or not, Papa was a pretty good shot," Bae told them. "He taught me how to use a sling and then a bow, when I was big enough."

"Would you teach me, Grandpa?" Henry asked.

"I'm not sure," both of his mothers said at once before looking at once another. There was something, almost a smile or an agreement between them.

"Maybe when you are a little older," Rumplestiltskin told him. "You need a little more height before your father's bow will fit you anyway."

Belle was smiling, but she seemed a little tired. Rumplestiltskin was wondering if she hadn't worked too hard with this holiday thing. He had been a little concerned before, but so far she had been able to turn around and convince him that she was fine, usually by dragging him off to bed (or the settee, or that one memorable time, well, the bath tub was a lot bigger than it looked). But this wasn't like her, and he wondered if perhaps she had allowed herself to get over stressed. After all, even for the holidays this wasn't normal.

"I'm going to check on the pie," Belle said, rising from the table.

"Do you need any help?" Snow asked, but Belle shook her head and made her way into the kitchen. After a moment, Rumplestiltskin rose as well.

"I'll go see if she needs any help," he said. No one said a word as he limped out of the room.

"Do you think Belle's alright, she's been awfully quiet today," Mary Margaret said to the room at large.

"She does seem a little...off," Emma said.

"Maybe I should go see..."

"I wouldn't, let Gold handle it. After earlier, I'm not opening any doors on them." Everyone looked at her, but she refused to say anything.

"Do you think that its about what you guys were talking about yesterday, Dad?" Henry asked.

"What do you know about that, kid?" Bae asked hoping that he hadn't overheard them.

"What..." Emma started but Bae gave her a look that begged her not to ask further.

"Nothing, just that you guys seemed pretty serious before I came down the hill," he said

"Well what is it Neal? Is something wrong, come on you can tell us," Mary Margaret asked with concern.

"No, there's nothing wrong, it's just...Well, Belle will tell us all soon enough." He didn't like the position he was being put in, but he had promised that he wouldn't say anything.


	5. Chapter 5

In the kitchen, Belle was hurrying around getting the plates, the oven open in front of her. "Belle, is everything alright?" Rumplestiltskin asked. He reached out to try to slow her almost frantic movements and she stopped, right before him.

"It's nothing just there is so much to do and I need to get the pie and..." she reached behind her to pick up the serving plate, almost dropping it in her haste.

"And what, Belle, its all fine, we don't have to do everything at once," he said, keeping his voice low.

"Let me get this out," she said bending over and grabbing for the hot pad. She lifted one pie out and was reaching for the plate when she lost her grip and it fell, clattering to the floor. "I can't do anything..."

Rumplestiltskin picked up the plate, unharmed from the floor and moved to stand beside her. "Belle, please, you know there is nothing you can't tell me, what is bothering you love?"

"I'm pregnant," she said suddenly. This time the plate fell even further.

"You...what?" he shouted, his voice full of an emotion that he couldn't quite name.

"What was that?" Mary Margaret said starting out of her chair along with Emma.

"I think it would be best if we all stayed here," Bae said with a knowing smile.

"You know what's going on," Emma said, with an accusatory look. But the young man didn't answer, only smiled.

"You mean we are going to have a baby? When, how long have you known?" Rumplestiltskin said, as he held Belle close to him.

"Yes we are," she said with a smile. It felt so good to tell him, even if it hadn't been the way she planned it. Perhaps it was even better, she thought, getting most of the telling out all at once. He looked down at her, a huge smile lighting his face. "I've only known since yesterday, I wanted to be sure first."

"That's what you were doing when you canceled lunch," he said, turning her to face him. "But why not tell me, I could have gone with you."

"I didn't know how, and what if I was wrong? I didn't want you to be disappointed, or...well, we've never talked about it and I wasn't sure if you wanted children in the first place and..." Before she could start another long series of explanations, he kissed her.

The conversation had died in the dining room, everyone looking at everyone and trying to pretend they weren't listening for something to happen in the other room. No one was willing to walk through that door, not after Emma's revelation about walking in on them earlier, but they weren't quite sure what to do. Finally the door opened, and Belle came back into the room, carrying a pie in each hand, while Gold followed behind her. The smile that lit his face was a shock to everyone.

"Rumple, would you bring the cake," Belle asked, smiling.

"Of course, love," he said.

"We have pumpkin pie, and cherry," Belle said cheerily, setting the two pies down on the table. "And there is coconut cake for anyone who wants."

"What we would like is some answers," Emma said, ever straight forward. "What was all that about?"

"I think that I should wait until..."

"Here we are," Rumplestiltskin said. He still had that soppy smile on his face that was starting to make everyone a little nervous. He sat the cake down but rather than return to his seat, he stayed standing next to Belle.

"What is going on, Gold, sounded like you were breaking the china in there," Emma asked him straight up.

"Everything is fine, more than fine," he said. "But I think that Belle should..."

"We are going to have a baby," she said, unwilling to wait any longer. She always believed it best to be honest. The table exploded in sound as congratulations warred with shock in the room.

"You knew," Emma accused Bae, but the young man said nothing, just smiled at her. Then he looked at Belle and his father. Yep, exactly the way he expected.

"Best Thanksgiving Ever!" Henry said.


	6. Chapter 6

Epilogue:

Rumplestiltskin sat by the fire with Belle pulled up close against him enjoying their now quiet house. It had been nice, but being alone with her fiancé was even better, and she was very tired. "Are you really happy, I mean about this?" he asked her. He had been a little quiet since everyone left, and she hoped that he wasn't having second thoughts.

"I am. I think you will be a brilliant father," she told him.

"I didn't do so well that last time," Rumplestiltskin said as he caressed the side of the face. "And I don't want you to regret...this is my fault."

"Not sure about fault, I don't know that its even a matter of fault. I think we were both involved in the process, and I assure you that I enjoyed every moment of it. In fact, since everyone is gone..." Belle said suggestively. Usually nothing could shake him out of a black mood quite so fast.

"I don't mean that," he said, trying to deliberately ignore the smile dancing in her eyes, or the small hand she had just slipped down to rest on his thigh. "I mean, we should have waited; I should have taken time, or at least preventative measures..."

"I had no more intention of waiting any more than you did. If at any time we had either of us thought of it, we wouldn't be having this discussion like this. I can't be sad about your child; I just can't. My father told me once that no one is ever prepared to be a parent until they have to be."

"There is truth to that," he said shifting his bad leg. He had questioned a lot of his decisions over the years, but despite everything that had happened, the injury that got him home to his son was not one of them. "It's just...Belle, I did think about it; I thought about it before I even knew for certain that you wanted that kind of relationship with me. I just thought at my age...I didn't want to bring it up and find out that you didn't want children, or didn't want them with me, or that you wanted them desperately and that I couldn't give them to you. It was too hard a conversation to have, so I put it off; I tried not to think about it, and once you..."

"Dragged you to bed?" she supplied. She was more than willing to take the responsibility for that. He wasn't reluctant exactly, though she had to take the initiative as he was certain that she couldn't share his feelings; but his faith in his own attractiveness had always been an issue, that and the age difference. "I could have gone out and dealt with it myself, if I had any doubts about wanting children. I am a librarian, I know the facts; and this world is much more complicated than our own. Besides, despite everything, Bae loves you; he doesn't think you were a poor father, just a little overprotective. But that is beside the point. The fact is that I don't want children, not in the abstract, I want your children, the children of my true love."

Rumplestiltskin looked down at her in awe. He couldn't, he wouldn't believe that he could deserve this, but the evidence was here right in front of him. She wasn't just willing to marry him, she wanted to have children with him, raise them with him. A family, something he had lost hope in having some three centuries ago. For all of his faults, and he had many, he couldn't deny that she wanted him, and he determined in that moment that he would do everything he could to keep it that way.

"You are thinking too much," Belle said to him, ever aware of the dark thoughts that could consume him.

"I have a lot to think about, now. There is planning, preparations...Belle, we need to move our wedding. I'll not wait til the baby is here, or even close to it."

"That's very old fashioned," she told him, though she was smiling.

"I'm old fashioned, or at least old, love," he said, neatly avoiding her hand as she tried to smack him. "And I've been impatient to have you my wife; this gives me an excellent excuse. Belle, I want you to have the wedding that you dream of, and I'll not have anything interfere with that; if we have to get married tomorrow." He leaned down and kissed her lips softly. "You will have to tell your father as well. Soon, before he finds out some other way. You know what secrets are in this town."

Belle had avoided thinking about it, actually. She and her father had a bit of a strained relationship. After his attempt to end her relationship with Rumplestiltskin, she had not spoken to him and actively avoided him for some time. Maurice had accepted her engagement; there was little he could do about it, and it wasn't as if she hadn't been seen clearly accepting his proposal in front of most of the town. The only reason he had not been at their Thanksgiving celebration was that despite his obliviousness, a widow woman from their old world had finally managed to attract his attention, and he had been invited to dinner at her house to meet her sons, a pair of big strapping knights who these days ran a successful fishing business. Belle had agreed readily enough. She had been nervous enough without adding that strain.

"I'll tend to that in the morning," she told him, extracting herself and standing up. "But for now...Bed. I believe you and I have some more private celebrating to do."

"Are you sure?" he said cautiously, as she reached for his hands. Her first thought was anger, of course she was sure she wanted to, after all that was how they got to this state of affairs. But it only took one look to dispel her ire, the almost reverent way he looked at her, as if she was glass. Belle sighed. Rumplestiltskin, the all powerful Dark One, fearsome sorcerer, the town monster and her own personal beast, was concerned about the baby. For the first time, Belle wondered, not about what kind of father he would be, or about the pains and difficulties of childbirth, but about how she was going to survive nine months of coddling.


End file.
